Writing review of literature

What is a review of literature? Generally, the purpose of a review is to analyze

critically a segment of a published body of knowledge through summary,
classification, and comparison of prior research studies, reviews of literature, and
theoretical articles.
For example: Chapter 2 provides an extensive review of the literature and research
related to . The chapter will be divided into sections that include (a) history of
.., (b) importance of ., (c) current practices, and (d) ..
My own dissertation: This chapter will try to comprehensively cover the related
literature. What this chapter includes are the definition of terms and topics such
as discourse, the history of discourse, discourse and ideology, gender, discourse
and gender, power, the mainstream tradition of power research, the second-stream
of power research, discourse and power, discourse analysis, varieties and methods
of discourse analysis, discourse historical approach (DHA) in CDA, critical
discourse analysis (CDA), approaches to CDA, critical linguistics, the socio-
semiotic approach, the discourse-historical approach, the socio-cognitive approach,
Faircloughs CDA theory, social class, social class criteria, language use and social
class, place of residence, proverbs, systemic-functional linguistics, transitivity,
mood, sign, six species of signs, semiotics, a brief history of semiotics, highlights
of recent semiotic research, intertextuality, recent approaches to intertextuality,
literary studies, social semiotic perspectives, and educational studies of reading
and writing.

- A research question may be triggered by previous research.
- The researcher acquires a thorough knowledge of relevant earlier findings,
ongoing research, or new theories.
- Although there is no set rule governing the optimal time frame for a literature
search or the number of publications to be included, there is general consensus
that the search should be of sufficient length and breadth to include existing
pertinent seminal and landmark studies as well as current studies in the field (i.e.,
those conducted within the past 10 years).
- As Chapter 2 may be lengthy, it is essential to divide the chapter into as many
sections and subsections as needed to logically organize the information presented.
- As Chapter 2 presents information and conclusions drawn by other
researchers, citations should be used extensively throughout the chapter.
- Avoid overuse of direct quotations. Including many direct quotations produces
a literature review that usually lacks transitions and flow, and is difficult to read.
- Do not interject any personal ideas or theories.
Direct quotations, indirect quotations or paraphrasing, as well as any
information attributable to other researchers and individuals require citations. Use
the format recommended by the latest version of Publication Manual of the APA.
- It is difficult to estimate how long Chapter 2 should be. In some studies that rely
on historical and extensive descriptive information, Chapter 2 may be the main
focus of the whole dissertation and quite long. In general, however, Chapter 2
contains between 15 and 30 pages, although it may be as short as 10 pages or
as long as 50 or more pages.

Three parts of the literature review
Writing the introduction:
- Define or identify the general topic, issue, or area of concern, thus providing an
appropriate context for reviewing the literature.
- Point out overall trends in what has been published about the topic; or conflicts
in theory, methodology, evidence, and conclusions; or gaps in research and
scholarship; or a single problem or new perspective of immediate interest.
- Establish the writer's reason (point of view) for reviewing the literature; explain
the criteria to be used in analyzing and comparing literature and the organization of
the review (sequence); and, when necessary, state why certain literature is or is not
included (scope).

Writing the body:
- Group research studies and other types of literature (reviews, theoretical
articles, case studies, etc.)
- Summarize individual studies or articles with as much or as little detail as each
merits according to its comparative importance in the literature, remembering that
space (length) denotes significance.
- Provide the reader with strong "umbrella" sentences at beginnings of
paragraphs, "signposts" throughout, and brief "so what" summary sentences at
intermediate points in the review to aid in understanding comparisons and
analyses.
- Key words definition

Writing the conclusion:
- Summarize major contributions of significant studies and articles to the body
of knowledge under review, maintaining the focus established in the introduction.
- Evaluate the current "state of the art" for the body of knowledge reviewed,
pointing out major methodological flaws or gaps in research.
- Conclude by providing some insight into the relationship between the central
topic of the literature review and a larger area of study such as a discipline, a
scientific endeavor, or a profession.